SustainabilityHQ.com Weekly Highlights March 29, 2012

Global warming close to becoming irreversible: Scientists
(Tuesday - March 27, 2012)
Source: Economic Times - LONDON: The world is close to reaching tipping points that will make it irreversibly hotter, making this decade critical in efforts to contain global warming, scientists warned on Monday. Scientific estimates differ but the...

Sustainability & Corporate Responsibility Reporting
G&A Institute is the Global Reporting Initiative's (GRI) sole data partner for the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and the Republic of Ireland. As the data partner we monitor, analyze and database information on all Sustainability reports issued in these territories. Recent Sustainability and CR Reports issued in the USA, UK and Ireland are:

USA

• CONSOL Energy Publishes 2011 Corporate Responsibility Report - March 28, 2012 Source: PR Newswire

• From Disaster Relief to Scholarship Support, 2011 CSR Report Highlights Lowe’s Investments in Tomorrow - March 27, 2012 Source: MarketWatch

• Coca-Cola Releases Water Stewardship Progress Report - March 24, 2012 Source: Coca-Cola/BusinessWire

• Starbucks Sustainability Report Paints A Mostly Rosy Picture Of Green Progress - March 22, 2012  Source: Treehugger

UK

• British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) publishes Sustainability Report 2011 - March 27, 2012 Source: British American Tobacco
• BP (LON:BP) publishes Sustainability Review 2011 - March 22, 2012 Source: BP

ESG / Sustainability

Companies yearn for US debt-reduction plan, says Business Roundtable leader
(Tuesday - March 27, 2012) Associated Profiles : Business & Human Rights Resource Centre
Source: Christian Science Monitor - Business leader John Engler is president of the Business Roundtable, a group of chief executive officers whose firms employ 14 million workers and have $6 trillion in annual revenues. Mr. Engler previously served as ...

EPA to limit carbon-dioxide emissions from new power plants
(Tuesday - March 27, 2012)
Source: The Seattle Times - The EPA's proposed limits on greenhouse-gas emissions from new power plants would require new plants to emit no more than 1,000 pounds of carbon dioxide per megawatt of electricity produced. The average U.S. natural-gas plant...

McDonald's Worldwide Suppliers Make Strides in Sustainable Practices
(Tuesday - March 27, 2012) Associated Profiles : Conservation International
Source: MarketWatch- McDonald's is pleased to announce the winners of its 2012 Best of Sustainable Supply Chain by highlighting 51 stories of supply chain partners who have risen to the company's challenge of improving food sources, the environment...

Watchdog group: Foxconn hid young workers before inspection
(Friday - March 23, 2012) Associated Profiles : Fair Labor Association
Source: CNET News - One of the organization's employees also says Foxconn banned 16- and 17-year-old workers from overtime while inspections are ongoing.

Commentary

Triple Pundit Walmart's Sustainability Efforts Stall Under New Leadership
(Wednesday - March 28, 2012)
Source: Triple Pundit - In October 2005, Walmart announced plans to transform itself into one of the greenest corporations in the world. Then-CEO Lee Scott called sustainability “essential to our future success as a retailer.” I visited with Lee Scott...

Are Cola Companies Behaving Like Cigarette Companies In The U.S.?
(Wednesday - March 28, 2012)
Source: Forbes - The latest report by Beverage Digest, which measures the Carbonated Soft Drinks market size in the U.S., points to declining soda consumption in the U.S. in the coming years. Total CSD consumption stood at 9.274 billion cases...

Sovereign Wealth Funds

Asia Set to Double Reserve Pool as Europe Squeezes IMF: Economy
(Wednesday - March 28, 2012) Associated Profiles : State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) Investment Company (China)
Source: Bloomberg- Asian policy makers are preparing to double a $120 billion reserve pool to defend the region against shocks, reducing their reliance on traditional backstops such as the International Monetary Fund as Europe saps resources.  

What investors can learn from Norway
(Tuesday - March 27, 2012) Associated Profiles : Norwegian Government Pension Fund – Global (Statens pensjonsfond – Utland) , Norwegian Government Pension Fund - Norway
Source: Money Watch CBS- While the Yale Endowment Fund is probably the best known institutional fund, many people might be surprised to learn what is the largest fund on the planet -- the Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG). It's also highly...

Further Damage Tipped For China Stock Market
(Friday - March 23, 2012) Associated Profiles : State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) Investment Company (China)
Source: NASDAQ- The China stock market has closed lower in two of three sessions since the end of the two-day winning streak in which it had collected more than 35 points or 1.5 percent. The Shanghai Composite Index finished just above the...

Asset Managers

Investors want improved accounting, corporate governance: report
(Tuesday - March 27, 2012) Associated Profiles : UBS
Source: Sin Chew Jit Poh- KUALA LUMPUR, -- Investors want to see new and improved accounting, auditing and corporate governance standards developed in a more integrated manner, says a report by the ACCA (Association of ...

Sustainability Strategies Provide Competitive Advantage for Supply Chains
(Thursday - March 22, 2012) Associated Profiles : MSCI Group (NYSE: MDX)
Source: PR Web - On March 29, turn sustainability into a competitive advantage by participating in the newest Tompkins Supply Chaincast, Why Sustainability Matters in Your Supply Chain.

Sustainability Strategies Provide Competitive Advantage for Supply Chains
(Thursday - March 22, 2012) Associated Profiles : MSCI Group (NYSE: MDX)
Source: PR Web - On March 29, turn sustainability into a competitive advantage by participating in the newest Tompkins Supply Chaincast, Why Sustainability Matters in Your Supply Chain.

his is just a sample of some of the articles from this weeks SustainabilityHQ Highlights.  You can view the full Highlights by using the following links.  Sustainability | ESG, Highlights for the Week of March 29, 2012